EWG charges brands $750 per formulation to apply for its VERIFIED mark; Yuka booked $11,884,771 from reader subscriptions in 2025 and takes nothing from brands. Here is who pays each of eight apps, and what that money can and cannot buy.
SlipperSkin finding
Read on 23 October 2026, four of eight major ingredient-checker apps take money from brands or their labs (Think Dirty, EWG Skin Deep, SkinSAFE, INCI Beauty) and four say they take none; only two publish the fee, and none of the four says a brand can buy its score.
Four kinds of payer, in different mixes:
Unevenly. Think Dirty has the widest mix: subscriptions, brand fees, ads, affiliate links, its own beauty-box shop and a donation box on its site. Clearya has the narrowest: donations only, and it says it "does not accept payments or sponsorships". The red lines are the brand money, the flow a shopper most wants to know about.
Think Dirty, EWG Skin Deep, SkinSAFE, INCI Beauty take it; Yuka, Skincarisma, OnSkin, Clearya say in plain words that they do not. Being on the second list is a choice with a cost: Yuka funds a 20-person team from subscriptions, and Clearya from gifts. Being on the first list is not a scandal either: each of the four discloses its programme on its own site, which is more than many review businesses do.
Placement and badges, on some apps; never the score, by every app's own account. That is the distinction worth keeping. On EWG Skin Deep, VERIFIED products are "listed first in search results", so the order of a search page is partly a paid fact while the 1 to 10 hazard score is not. On Think Dirty, verified partners get "Pinned Results" and "First Scroll Priority". Think Dirty also charges a one-time fee to update a listing, and lets brands disclose fragrance components under a non-disclosure agreement so the rating reflects them; it says brands cannot improve a rating "by providing false or misleading information". EWG sells a consultancy pitched for "certification or Skin Deep score improvement", which reads as help to reformulate, since EWG's apps page says "Brands never influence EWG's scores".
| App | What a brand can pay for | What the app says money cannot buy |
|---|---|---|
| Yuka | Nothing. | "Brands cannot pay Yuka to advertise their products" |
| Think Dirty | A checkmark, Pinned Results, First Scroll Priority, "Our Picks" top spots and a licence to the TD rating seal; brands also pay a one-time fee to update a listing. | Brands cannot improve ratings "by providing false or misleading information" (partnership FAQ, read 21 October 2026) |
| EWG Skin Deep | The EWG VERIFIED mark, which also lists a product first in Skin Deep search results; a paid consultancy pitched for "certification or Skin Deep score improvement". | "Brands never influence EWG's scores" |
| SkinSAFE | The Trusted Choice seal (BEST or GOOD) after a data review that includes patch and clinical testing; the fee is not published. | "100% unbiased product ratings" |
| INCI Beauty | In-app advertising, and for laboratories a "Rating prediction" subscription that shows "the rating a product will have from its design phase". | The funding page says any lapse in "integrity, or transparency" would be "immediately penalized" by its users |
| Skincarisma | Nothing. | "No paid placement no brand can buy a spot or a rating" |
| OnSkin | Nothing; its Safe Choice mark (products scoring 95 or more) is not sold. | "no brand deals, no sponsored reviews" |
| Clearya | Nothing. | "Clearya does not accept payments or sponsorships for endorsing brands or promoting products" |
Only two publish a number. EWG's application portal states a "non-refundable $750 per formulation evaluation fee", then "an annual licensing fee that is typically based on the number of licensed products and your company's annual revenue". Think Dirty's partner pricing page listed a "one time review fee" of $322 per SKU when read on 21 October 2026, with a bulk discount for more SKUs and, after approval, "monthly licensing fees". For a 10-product line that is $7,500 to apply to EWG and $3,220 at Think Dirty's single-SKU rate, before either licence. SkinSAFE's Trusted Choice page has a contact form and no price.
Not by itself, and the apps that charge say so in writing. A verification fee pays for a review of ingredients a brand has disclosed, sometimes including fragrance components no label shows, so it can make a listing more accurate. The fair reading is narrower: where a fee buys placement, the top of a search list is partly advertising, and where a fee buys a seal, the seal is a licence. The score is the number each app stakes its name on, and the one to compare across apps, as our 20-product study of whether the apps agree does. Our sibling pieces cover what Think Dirty costs readers and how Yuka, Think Dirty and EWG score.
1. Who pays it: readers, brands, advertisers or donors? 2. Can a brand buy placement: pinned, first in search, "our picks"? If so, read past the top of the list. 3. Is the badge a paid licence? A seal can be earned AND paid for; it is a different thing from the score. 4. Does it publish its brand fee? EWG and Think Dirty do. 5. What does it say a brand can NOT buy? Hold it to that.
For each app we read its own funding, partner, pricing, disclosure and privacy pages, and its US App Store and Google Play listings, on 23 October 2026. A mark appears only where one of those pages shows it, and each links to its page. Think Dirty's website refused automated reads on 23 October 2026, so its partner terms are as read on 21 October 2026 and dated that way; its App Store, Google Play and shop pages were re-read on 23 October 2026. We did not apply to any programme or contact any app, so unpublished fees stay unpublished here.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Its users. Yuka's independence page lists 2025 revenue of $11,884,771 from Premium subscriptions and $57,694 from books and calendars, and says "Brands cannot pay Yuka to advertise". Read 23 October 2026.
EWG says no: its apps page states "Brands never influence EWG's scores". Brands can pay a $750 per formulation evaluation fee and an annual licence for the EWG VERIFIED mark, and VERIFIED products are listed first in Skin Deep search results.
When read on 21 October 2026, Think Dirty's partner pricing page listed a one-time review fee of $322 per SKU, with a bulk discount for more SKUs, followed by monthly licensing fees for a Verified Brand Partnership. It also charges a one-time fee to update a listing.
By their own pages: Yuka, Skincarisma, OnSkin, Clearya. Yuka is funded by subscriptions, Skincarisma by affiliate links, OnSkin by subscriptions and ads, and Clearya by donations.
Not on its own. A badge such as EWG VERIFIED or SkinSAFE Trusted Choice is a licensed mark a brand applies and pays for after meeting the programme criteria. The app's score is a separate number; compare that, and check its date.
Mostly from ads, affiliate links to retailers and paid upgrades. Skincarisma earns affiliate commission and shows ads to non-members; INCI Beauty names advertising as its first source of funding; OnSkin's privacy policy describes interest-based advertising.
Every app here discloses how it is paid, and every one says its score is not for sale. The practical difference for a shopper is placement and badges: on EWG and Think Dirty, the top of a list or a seal can be paid for, while the score cannot. Choose by the question you have, and when money worries you, start with Yuka or Clearya.